Colorado toward the top, Sam Houston at the end of UCA schedule

Bears to play 12 games, six at home, on 2013 football slate

The University of Central Arkansas’ Sept. 7 football game against Colorado University has been set for a couple of years.

Southland Conference officials have been working for more than a year to reset the schedule with Incarnate Word, Abilene Christian and Houston Baptist joining the league as football members in the future.

Monday, UCA officials announced they had tied the loose ends in the Bears’ football schedule for 2013.

It’s a 12-game schedule that features six home dates, beginning with Incarnate World on Thursday, Aug. 29. Incarnate Word will not play a full conference schedule this season.

The team the Bears shared the SLC championship with last season, two-time NCAA FCS runner-up Sam Houston State, will now be the last regular-season game (Nov. 23) and will be a home game this season. The Bearkats have usually played the Bears in September or October, but conference games will be in a different order because of the new schedule with the pending conference additions.

The FCS playoffs, which will expand to 24 teams, will begin a week later this season.

UCA, which was 9-3 last season and reached the second round of the FCS playoffs the second straight season, will face 11 Division I opponents and one Division II opponent (Nebraska-Kearney) this season.

“We are allowed to play 12 regular-season games in 2013 and 2014 and we have six at home and six away both years.” said Dr. Brad Teague, UCA’s director of athletics n a news release. This sets up very nicely for our fans and student-athletes. We have four of the seven conference games at home this fall with easy trips to non-conference FCS games at Missouri State and UT Martin.”

Missouri State, in Springfield, Mo., is a member of the Missouri Valley Conference. UT-Martin, in Martin, Tenn., competes in the Ohio Valley Conference. Officials at both schools plan a regular home-and-home series with UCA when the schedule permits.

The Bears will play three road games in September.

UCA welcomes SLC power McNeese State to Conway for the conference opener on Oct. 5, then hosts Division II Nebraska-Kearney on Oct. 12.